1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a battery cooling structure for cooling a battery mounted in a vehicle.
2. Description of Related Art
Vehicles such as hybrid vehicles (HV) and electric vehicles (EV) run by driving a motor using electric power from a battery. Therefore, a battery that ensures the necessary electric power is mounted in the vehicle. Also, in order to improve the battery mounting space efficiency, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2010-036723 (JP 2010-036723 A) proposes to house the battery under a rear seat. Also, a battery generates heat as it charges and discharges. In particular, with a battery for a vehicle, large current often flows, so the amount of heat generated is large. If the temperature of the battery becomes high, the battery will deteriorate, so it is necessary to provide a structure to cool the battery. JP 2010-036723 A describes a structure that draws air into a vehicle cabin from in front of a lower portion of the rear seat, and discharges this air out of the vehicle from behind a lower portion of the rear seat.